SCHOOLBOARDFACESVACANCIES

Two incumbents on the Lawrence school board say they won't seek re-election in April; two others whose seats are up for election are still considering their options.

The Lawrence school board will have at least two new faces after this spring's elections.

Board President Maley Wilkins and board member Carol Linhos said this week that they won't seek re-election and will leave the board when their terms end later this year. Both were first elected in 1995.

Two other members whose seats are up for election in April, Mary Loveland and Kerry Altenbernd, remain undecided about whether they will run again.

Both Wilkins and Linhos cited personal reasons for their decisions to leave the board.

Wilkins, a Lawrence native, works as vice president of People's Bank.

"It was really a question of a time commitment for me," she said. "For professional and personal reasons I've decided not to run."

Wilkins said she has no regrets regarding her time spent on the board.

"It's a wonderful thing to do," she said. "I've gotten more out of it than I've given."

Wilkins said she will concentrate on her family and her career after she leaves the board. She and her husband, John, have two sons and a daughter enrolled in Lawrence schools.

Linhos, a principal in Topeka's Washburn Rural school district, has spent the bulk of her career in education, as a special education teacher and administrator.

She cited a possible career change as her main reason for giving up her seat.

"It's too time-consuming," she said. "I don't have the time anymore, but I recommend it to anyone. It's a wonderful opportunity to get involved in the community. I think everyone should run for public office."

Linhos and her husband, Bruce, are the parents of three children who graduated from Lawrence schools.

The two other incumbents whose seats are up for election are mulling whether to seek re-election.

"I'm working on it," Loveland said, when asked the inevitable question. "I have no announcement yet. I'm inclined to run again as opposed to if you'd asked me six months ago, but I'm not making a statement."

Loveland is finishing her third term on the board, and has served on the board longer than any other current member.

Like Loveland, Altenbernd is keeping his decision under wraps until later this week.

"I haven't decided yet," he said.

Altenbernd is finishing his first term on the board.

As of this week three candidates, Scott Morgan, Carmela Sibley and Jeffrey Morrow, have filed for election to the board.

Lawrence school board members serve four-year terms. Prospective candidates have until noon Jan. 26 to file for election at the Douglas County Courthouse.

-- JL Watson's phone message number is 832-7145. Her e-mail address is jwatson@ljworld.com.